DOCSLIB.ORG

Mental Health (Amendment) Bill Bill 8 of 1997/98 Research Paper 97/138

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Mental Health (Amendment) Bill Bill 8 of 1997/98 Research Paper 97/138 The Mental Health (Amendment) Bill Bill 8 of 1997/98 Research Paper 97/138 9 December 1997 Dr. Julian Lewis MP's Private Member's Bill, the Mental Health Amendment Bill, is due to be debated on Second Reading on 12 December 1997. Its aim is to improve access to in-patient psychiatric facilities for people who do not meet the criteria for compulsory admission but who are still in need of "sanctuary". This Paper discusses the background to the Bill, including the changes in mental health legislation over the past hundred years, the shift from providing care in institutions to a policy of "care in the community", the current pressure on in-patient psychiatric beds, and conditions in psychiatric units. It then describes the Bill clause by clause and summarises the responses that have been made to it by interested organisations. Katharine Wright Social Policy Section House of Commons Library Library Research Papers are compiled for the benefit of Members of Parliament and their personal staff. Authors are available to discuss the contents of these papers with Members and their staff but cannot advise members of the general public. CONTENTS ISummary 5 II A history of psychiatric provision 7 III The balance between hospital care and care in the community 14 A. Care in the community 14 B. Availability of in-patient beds 15 C. Conditions in psychiatric hospitals 19 D. Government action 21 1. Conservative Government 21 2. Labour Government 22 IV The Mental Health (Amendment) Bill 24 V Responses to the Bill 25 Research Paper 97/138 I Summary Julian Lewis MP's Private Member's Bill, the Mental Heath Amendment Bill (Bill 8 of 1997- 98) is prompted by the concern that the way the policy of "care in the community" has been implemented in practice has led to patients who need in-patient care in a safe environment being unable to access such care. This Paper attempts to summarise some of the background to the community care debate, before summarising the contents of the Bill and the responses that have been made to it by groups representing patients and healthcare professionals. Part II of the Paper gives a brief summary of how mental health legislation has changed over the past hundred years, from the Lunacy Act 1890 to the Mental Health Act 1983. It comments on the extent to which this legislation has been concerned with the powers of the state to intervene when a person is suffering from mental disorder, rather than with the kind of services which should be provided. Part III of the Paper describes the shift to the idea of "care in the community": the principle that mentally ill people should, wherever possible, be cared for in their own homes or in community based hostels and homes, rather than in large institutions. It discusses how the implementation of this policy has been accompanied by increasing pressure on acute (that is, short-term) psychiatric beds, especially in the inner cities and discusses the possible reasons for this. These include the argument that community facilities have not developed quickly enough to replace the facilities once provided in large institutions: patients may need to be admitted to acute beds because the community services available are not sufficient to cope with a relapse or acute episode of their illness; alternatively, patients may remain in acute beds, even though they do not need acute care, because of a shortage of other facilities to which they could be discharged, such as longer-term nursing care or supported housing in the community. This Part of the Paper also looks at the conditions in psychiatric units and at the policy announcements on care in the community and its relationship to in-patient care by both the current and previous Governments. Part IV summarises the Mental Health (Amendment) Bill. Clause 1 of the Bill would require each Health Authority in England and Wales to prepare a strategy for the provision of in- patient care for those in need of it, monitor progress towards implementing the strategy and make an annual report to the Secretary of State on that progress. Clause 2 would require Health Authorities to ensure that all in-patient beds in existing psychiatric units are provided in single-sex ward areas and that all room and ward doors are provided with adequate locks. Clause 3 makes the same provision for future psychiatric units. Part V describes the responses to the Bill by organisations representing people suffering from mental disorders and from the healthcare professions. The move to legislate on single-sex 5 Research Paper 97/138 wards is generally welcomed, but the response to the requirement to prepare a strategy on in- patient provision is more mixed: some organisations have welcomed it as a way of making Health Authorities give higher priority to in-patient psychiatric provision, while others believe it will not achieve this aim and will simply create added bureaucracy. 6 Research Paper 97/138 II A history of psychiatric provision Most of the legislation affecting the provision of psychiatric care in England and Wales focuses not on the kind of care patients should receive, but on the powers of the state to intervene when an individual is suffering from mental disorder and is deemed in need of treatment. The current legal framework is found in the Mental Health Act 1983, which is a consolidation of the Mental Health Act 1959 and the Mental Health (Amendment) Act 1982. Amendments to the 1983 Act have since been made by the Mental Heath (Patients in the Community) Act 1995 to allow for patients to be "supervised" in the community once they have been discharged from hospital. Whilst significant changes were made by the 1982 and 1995 Acts, it was the 1959 Act which signalled a fundamental shift in approach to the care and control of people suffering from mental illness. Before the 1959 Act, the relevant legislation for mentally ill people was found in the Lunacy Act 1890 and the Mental Treatment Act 1930. The former provided for poor law officials or relatives to apply for a judicial order to "certify" a "lunatic", so that he or she could be placed in an asylum. The application had to be accompanied by medical evidence and, according to Brenda Hoggett's summary of the history of mental health legislation,1 doctors often shrank from using this power, because of the stigma involved. It has been suggested that this then meant that when patients were, finally, certified, it was too late for treatment to be of any help. It also meant that there was little, if any, provision for those suffering from mental disorder falling short of "lunacy", unless they were able to pay as a private patient. The Board of Control (known up to 1913 as the Lunacy Commissioners) was empowered to supervise standards and protect patients in both public and private institutions. The Mental Treatment Act 1930 introduced for the first time the idea of "voluntary" patients in public institutions (formerly the Maudsley hospital was the only hospital permitted to accept non-paying patients without certification). The Act thus began to move the emphasis of psychiatric care towards informal admission and treatment, and away from mere institutional containment. As a result of the 1930 Act, there were from then on three categories of patient: "certified" patients under the 1890 Act, "temporary" patients (non- voluntary patients requiring treatment for less than a year) and voluntary patients (those able to make a written application to be treated in hospital). Asylums were also renamed "hospitals" and "lunatics" became "persons of unsound mind". However, "persons of unsound mind" who had been certified under the 1890 Lunacy Act could still only be placed in "designated" public mental hospitals, "registered" hospitals or "licensed" private nursing homes, and thus psychiatric institutions continued to develop quite separately from mainstream hospital provision. 1 Brenda Hoggett, Mental Health Law, 1990 p.8 7 Research Paper 97/138 The 1959 Act was described by Hoggett as "revolutionary". It enabled mentally ill patients to be admitted to hospital like any other patient (with compulsory admission and compulsory treatment only to be used where strictly necessary); it enabled mentally ill patients to be admitted to any public hospital, rather than being kept separate in designated institutions; it brought the legislation governing those with mental illness and those with learning disabilities together; and it aimed to reduce the stigma of being labelled mentally ill. Kathleen Jones, in Asylums and After2 sums up the provisions of the 1959 Act as follows: "1. The Act repealed all previous lunacy, mental treatment and mental deficiency legislation, and provided a single code for all types of mental disorder. 2. 'Mental disorder' was defined as 'mental illness, arrested or incomplete development of mind, psychopathic disorder, and any other disorder or disability of mind'. 3. The Board of Control was abolished, existing officers being transferred to the Ministry of Health. The Board's functions of inspection and review were transferred to local health authorities. 4. Local health authority mental health services provided under section 28 of the National Health Service Act 1946 might include the provision of residential accommodation, centres for training and occupation, the appointment of mental welfare officers, the exercise of the functions of guardianship and 'the provision of any ancillary or supplementary services'. 5. Mental Health Review Tribunals, organised on a regional basis, took over the 'watchdog' functions of the Board of Control in individual cases of compulsory detention. They were to consist of legal members, medical members, and 'members having such experience in administration, such knowledge of the social services, or such other qualifications and experience as the Lord Chancellor considers suitable', to be appointed by joint consultation between the Lord Chancellor and the Minister of Health.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Decision-Making Behaviour Under the Mental Health Act 1983 and Its Impact on Mental Health Tribunals: an English Perspective
    laws Article Decision-Making Behaviour under the Mental Health Act 1983 and Its Impact on Mental Health Tribunals: An English Perspective Nicola Glover-Thomas ID School of Law, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK; [email protected] Received: 21 February 2018; Accepted: 20 March 2018; Published: 24 March 2018 Abstract: In England and Wales, the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA 1983) provides the legal framework which governs decisions made concerning the care and treatment of those suffering from mental disorders, where they may pose a risk to themselves or others. The perspective of the patient and the care provider may conflict and can be a source of tension and challenge within mental health law. Through access to a mental health tribunal, patients are offered the apparatus to review and challenge their detention. With detention rates under the mental health legislation rising exponentially, this is having a knock-on effect upon tribunal application numbers. As there is a legal requirement to review all cases of individuals detained under the MHA 1983, understanding the key drivers for this increase in detention is essential in order to understand how to better manage both detention rates and the upsurge in tribunal caseloads. With the increase in overall activity, mental health tribunal workloads present significant practical challenges and has downstream cost implications. Keywords: detention; caseload; mental health tribunal; Mental Health Act 1983; decision-making; risk; costs 1. Introduction Mental illness costs the UK economy £100 billion a year (Johnson 2016; McCrone et al. 2008). In 2012, the Her Majesty’s (HM) Government spent £126 billion on health (HM Treasury 2011, p.
    [Show full text]
  • The Mental Health Act Commission
    ORIGINAL PAPERS The Mental Health Act Commission Christopher Curran and William Bingley The aim of this article is to promote a clearer under for Health to establish the Mental Health Act standing of the Mental Health Commission's develop Commission. The Commission was established ment, structure and function. Over recent years, mental on 1 September 1983 under the Mental Health health professionals and patients have become more Act Commission (Establishment and Consti aware of the organisation and its work, although some tution) Order (S.I. 1983 No. 892), and started may remain uncertain about its function and how it work on 30 September 1983. fits into the overall care of detained patients. The Commission's fundamental job is to safeguard the well- being and interests of patients detained under the Act. Present structure and composition of Its remit does not extend to informal patients. Unless the Commission otherwise indicated, all statutory references are to the 1983 Mental Health Act. The Commission is governed by the Mental Health Act Commission Regulations (S.I. 1983 No. 894). It is a special health authority within the National Health Service (Fig. 1) and com Historical perspective prises approximately 90 part-time Commission From the 18th century, special bodies have ex ers. They are appointed by the Secretary of isted to monitor the use of statutory powers and State for Health for England and the Secretary of ensure that mentally disordered people receive State for Wales, usually for four years. Commis appropriate care. Early forerunners of the Mental sioners are drawn from a multi-professional Health Act Commission were the Commissioners background, and they include lawyers, doctors, in Lunacy, established in 1774 under the Act for nurses, social workers, psychologists, academ Regulating Private Madhouses.
    [Show full text]
  • MAKING DECISIONS for PEOPLE WHO LACK CAPACITY Mental Capacity Act 2005
    MAKING DECISIONS FOR PEOPLE WHO LACK CAPACITY Mental Capacity Act 2005 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEMENTAL CAPACITY ACT (MCA) AND THE MENTAL HEALTH ACT (MHA) This is one of a series of resource materials for clinical ethics committees providing explanation and discussion of the sections of the Mental Capacity Act which are particularly relevant to their work. Introduction Mental disorder may sometimes be associated with impaired decision making capacity. This incapacity may be temporary during acute periods of illness or more sustained in those with severe and enduring mental health problems. In such circumstances treatment will proceed using the provisions contained in the MCA. On occasions a person may be so unwell that they may also fulfill the criteria for detention in hospital under the Mental Health Act (MHA) for assessment and treatment of their mental disorder . When this occurs it may be unclear as to the most appropriate legislative route to take (see link for a summary of the MHA http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Legislation/Actsandbills/DH_4002034) Case example Box 1 Case example Mrs A Mrs A is severely depressed and extremely withdrawn. She passively goes along with her husband who brings her to the ward for admission. She makes no attempt to go when her husband leaves but later sits staring at the door asking to go home. She cannot engage in any discussion about the treatment plan. The team thinks she lacks decision making capacity. The team then discusses whether she should be treated under the MCA (as she lacks capacity) or, given that she has not consented to the admission and looks as if she wants to leave, whether the MHA would be more appropriate.
    [Show full text]
  • Medical Treatment for Mental Disorder Under the MHA Policy
    Medical Treatment for Mental Disorder under the MHA Policy Mental Health Act 1983 as amended by the Mental Health Act 2007 HPFT Policy HPFT Version 5 Executive Lead Executive Director Quality & Safety Lead Author MHA Operational Manager Approved Date 06/06/2017 Approved By Mental Health Act Quality & Policy Group Ratified Date 06/06/2017 Ratified By Mental Health Act Quality & Policy Group Issue Date 28/07/2017 Expiry Date 28/02/2020 Target Audience This Policy must be understood by anyone: Prescribing or administrating treatment for a mental disorder and seeking consent to treatment Working with those subject to the provisions of the MHA, both detained and “community” patients. Document on a Page Title of document MHA Medical Treatment for Mental Disorder Document Type Policy Ratifying Policy Panel Committee Version Issue Date Review Date Lead Author MHA Operational 5 28/07/2017 28/07/2020 Manager Staff need to know about this policy All staff must be aware of which legal authority they are using to give because treatment for a mental disorder; there must be valid authority to treat (complete in 50 all patients detained under the MHA. Any treatment given without words) legal authority is an assault on that patient. Staff are encouraged to read Anyone administrating medication for a mental disorder must ensure the whole policy that there is a legal authority to do so. but I (the Author) have chosen three All patients admitted to an in-patient unit, whether informal or key messages from detained, should be assessed for their capacity to consent to the document to treatment.
    [Show full text]
  • 00 MENTAL HEALTH 2012 Edn 00-291.Qxd 22/12/11 14:21 Page 1
    00 MENTAL HEALTH 2012 edn 00-291.qxd 22/12/11 14:21 Page 1 Chapter 1 Background to the Mental Health Act 2007 Introduction The Mental Health Act, as passed in 2007 and largely implemented in 2008, is the result of ten years of debate. Many will see the Act as a disappointing conclusion to such a lengthy period of discussion and analysis. It is essentially an amendment Act which reforms the existing Mental Health Act 1983. In its final version the Act is not a particularly radical reform and it preserves most of the existing law. The UK Government’s initial plans were more radical but they met significant resistance as we shall see in this chapter. We will also look at the main changes in summary form. The structure of this book This book is essentially concerned with the Mental Health Act 1983 as revised by the 2007 amendments and as it operates in England and Wales. There are some differences between the two countries in terms of the Act but more significantly with the various rules, regulations and Codes of Practice. We try to highlight the differences where they are significant. The text of the Act itself is included within this book but occasionally readers may need to access the internet or seek other source materials for particular references (such as the Reference Guide). The book contains some material on the Mental Capacity Act because of its relevance to mental health law. The aim is to simplify the law as far as possible to make it accessible to professionals and to those affected by the law.
    [Show full text]
  • Personality Disorder and the Law: Some Awkward Questions
    Jill Peay Personality disorder and the law: some awkward questions Article (Published version) (Refereed) Original citation: Peay, Jill (2011) Personality disorder and the law: some awkward questions. Philosophy, psychiatry and psychology, 18 (3). pp. 231-244. ISSN 1071-6076 DOI: 10.1353/ppp.2011.0035 © 2011 The Johns Hopkins University Press This version available at: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/39443/ Available in LSE Research Online: November 2011 LSE has developed LSE Research Online so that users may access research output of the School. Copyright © and Moral Rights for the papers on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. Users may download and/or print one copy of any article(s) in LSE Research Online to facilitate their private study or for non-commercial research. You may not engage in further distribution of the material or use it for any profit-making activities or any commercial gain. You may freely distribute the URL (http://eprints.lse.ac.uk) of the LSE Research Online website. PERSONALITY DISORDER AND THE LAW: SOME AWKWARD QUESTIONS JILL PEAY* Professor of Law London School of Economics and Political Science Address for correspondence Department of Law, LSE, Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE, UK [email protected] Dr Jill Peay is a Professor in the Department of Law at the LSE with interests in both civil and criminal mental health law, and in the treatment of offenders. She is the author of Mental Health and Crime (2010) Routledge, and Decisions and Dilemmas: Working with Mental Health Law (2003) Hart Publishing.
    [Show full text]
  • Medical Treatment Under Part IV of the Mental Health Act 1983 and the Human Rights Act 1998: Review of Article 3 and 8 Case Law
    Lawn & McDonald Sexual assault on psychiatric in-patient wards NATIONAL PATIENT SAFETYAGENCY policies to aid prevention. Psychiatric Declaration of interest (2006) With Safety in Mind: Mental Bulletin, 17,274-276. Health Services and Patient Safety. THOMAS, C., BARTLETT, A. & MEZEY, None. Patient Safety Observatory Report 2/ G. C. (1995) The extent and effects of special July 2006. National Patient Safety violence among psychiatric in-patients. articles Agency. Psychiatric Bulletin, 19,600-604. ROYAL COLLEGE OF PSYCHIATRISTS References WARNER, J., PITTS, N., CRAWFORD, (19 96) Sexual Abuse and Harassment in M. J., et al (2004) Sexual activity among BARLOW, F. & WOLFSON, P. (1997) COLE, M., BALDWIN, D. & THOMAS, P. Psychiatric Settings. Royal College of patients in psychiatric hospital wards. Safety and security: a survey of (2003) Sexual assault on wards: staff Psychiatrists. female psychiatric in-patients. actions and reactions. International Journal of the Royal Society of Psychiatric Bulletin, 21, Journal of Psychiatry in Clinical Practice, ROYAL COLLEGE OF PSYCHIATRISTS Medicine, 97, 477-479. (2001) Response: Setting the 270-272. 7,239-242. WELCH, S. J. & CLEMENTS, G.W. (1996) Boundaries; Reforming the Law on Sex Development of apolicy on sexuality for BAYNEY, R. & IKKOS, G. (2003) GUDJONSSON, G. H., HAYES, G. D. & Offences. Royal College of hospitalized chronic psychiatric Managing criminal acts on the ROWLANDS, P. (2000) Fitness to be Psychiatrists. psychiatric ward: understanding the interviewed and psychological patients. CanadianJournal of police view. Advances in Psychiatric vulnerability: the views of doctors, SUBOTSKY, F. (1993) Sexual abuse in Psychiatry, 41,273-279. Treatment, 9,359-367. lawyers and police officers. Journal of psychiatric hospitals: developing Forensic Psychiatry, 11,74-92.
    [Show full text]
  • Modernising the Mental Health Act
    Modernising the Mental Health Act Increasing choice, reducing compulsion Final report of the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983 December 2018 © Crown copyright 2018 Published to GOV.UK in pdf format only. www.gov.uk/dhsc This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open- government-licence/version/3 Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. 1 Contents FOREWORD - REVIEW CHAIR .......................................................................................... 4 INTRODUCTION AND EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - REVIEW CHAIR AND VICE CHAIRS. 16 LETTER FROM THE REVIEW'S SERVICE USER AND CARER GROUP ....................... 35 HOW THE REVIEW CARRIED OUT ITS WORK .............................................................. 39 THE CASE FOR CHANGE ................................................................................................ 45 UNDERSTANDING RISING RATES OF DETENTION .................................................. 49 SERVICE USER EXPERIENCE ..................................................................................... 53 STEPS TO TACKLE THE DISPROPORTIONATE NUMBER OF PEOPLE FROM ETHNIC MINORITY COMMUNITIES DETAINED UNDER THE ACT ............................ 58 HOW WE ARE MEETING OUR HUMAN RIGHTS OBLIGATIONS ................................ 60 MENTAL CAPACITY AND DECISION MAKING IN THE MHA......................................
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 20: the Therapeutic Relationship: Treatment and Confidentiality Chapter 21: Powers of Restraint, and the Protection of Staff
    PART VI ^ TREATMENT AND RESTRAINT Chapter 20: The Therapeutic Relationship: Treatment and Confidentiality Chapter 21: Powers of Restraint, and the Protection of Staff 20.01 Chapter 20 THE THERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIP: TREATMENT AND CONFIDENTIALITY 20.01 Introduction 20.19 What forms of Treatment are A. TREATMENT FOR MENTAL governed by Part TV? DISORDER 20.20 Treatment requiring Consent and 20.02 Definition of Medical Treatment a Second Opinion (Section 57) 20.03 MilieM Therapy 20.21 Treatment requiring Consent or a Second Opinion (Section 58) 20.04 Psychotherapy 20.22 Appointment of Doctors and 20.05 Drug Treatment (Chemotherapy) others to Certify Consent and 20.06 Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) give Second Opinions 20.07 Psychosurgery 20.23 Visiting Patients and Inspection of 20.08 Behaviour Modification Records 20.08A Seclusion 20.24 Plans of Treatment 20.09 Sterilisation 20.25 Withdrawal of Consent 20.09A Treatment Plans 20.26 Review of Treatment B. CONSENT TO TREATMENT 20.27 Urgent Treatment UNDER THE COMMON LAW 20.28 Treatment Not Requiring Consent 20.10 Applicability of Common Law D. RIGHT TO TREATMENT Principles to Mentally UNDER THE EUROPEAN Disordered Persons CONVENTION ON HUMAN 20.11 Trespass to the Person: The Basic RIGHTS Principles 20.29 Article 5(1) Protects Only the 20.12 Information Right to Liberty and Not the 20.13 Voluntariness Right to Treatment 20.14 Specificity E. CONFIDENTIALITY 20.15 Competency 20.30 Professional Responsibility 20.15A Competency of Minors 20.31 Ownership of Medical Records 20.15B Substituted of Proxy Consent of 20.32 The Law of Confidence Incompetent Minors 20.33 Proposal for Reform of the Law 20.16 Necessity: Treatment in the of Confidence Absence of Consent 20.34 Access to Medical Records C.
    [Show full text]
  • International Legal Approaches to Neurosurgery for Psychiatric Disorders
    REVIEW published: 13 January 2021 doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.588458 International Legal Approaches to Neurosurgery for Psychiatric Disorders Jennifer A. Chandler 1*, Laura Y. Cabrera 2, Paresh Doshi 3, Shirley Fecteau 4,5, Joseph J. Fins 6,7, Salvador Guinjoan 8, Clement Hamani 9, Karen Herrera-Ferrá 10, C. Michael Honey 11, Judy Illes 12, Brian H. Kopell 13, Nir Lipsman 14, Patrick J. McDonald 15, Helen S. Mayberg 16, Roland Nadler 17, Bart Nuttin 18, Albino J. Oliveira-Maia 19,20, Cristian Rangel 21, Raphael Ribeiro 22, Arleen Salles 23 and Hemmings Wu 24 1 Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada, 2 Center for Ethics & Humanities in the Life Sciences and Dept. Translational Neuroscience, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States, 3 Department of Neurosurgery, Jaslok Hospital and Research Center, Mumbai, India, 4 Department of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, QC, Canada, 5 CERVO Brain Research Center, Center Intégré Universitaire en Santé et Services Sociaux de la Capitale-Nationale, Quebec City, QC, Canada, 6 Weill Cornell Medical College, Consortium for the Advanced Study of Brain Injury, Weill Cornell and the Rockefeller University, New York, NY, United States, 7 Solomon Center for Health Law & Policy, Yale Law School, New Haven, CT, United States, 8 Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, United States, Edited by: 9 Harquail Center for Neuromodulation, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Division of Neurosurgery, Sunnybrook Health James J. Giordano,
    [Show full text]
  • Mental Health Act 1983: Code of Practice
    Mental Health Act 1983: Code of Practice Mental Health Act 1983: Code of Practice Presented to Parliament pursuant to section 118 of the Mental Health Act 1983 Published by TSO (The Stationery Office) and available from: Online www.tsoshop.co.uk Mail, Telephone, Fax & E-mail TSO PO Box 29, Norwich, NR3 1GN Telephone orders/General enquiries: 0870 600 5522 Fax orders: 0870 600 5533 E-mail: [email protected] Textphone 0870 240 3701 TSO@Blackwell and other Accredited Agents Crown copyright 2015 Applications for reproduction should be made in writing to The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. e-mail: [email protected] First published 2015 ISBN 978 0 11 323006 8 9308 Mental Health RTP v0_1.indd 1 07/01/2015 15:01 “Everyone including carers and families needs to know about the Code and all communication channels — from bottom to top and vice versa including sideways — should remain open for the benefit of all.” Expert Reference Group carer Contents Ministerial foreword 6 The views of service users and carers 7 Acknowledgements 8 Executive summary 9 Introduction 12 Underlying principles Using the Act 21 for care, treatment and Chapter 1 Guiding principles 22 support under the Act and good practice which Chapter 2 Mental disorder definition 26 advances equality and protects human rights Chapter 3 Human rights, equality and health inequalities 29 Issues of importance Protecting patients’ rights and autonomy 35 when empowering Chapter 4 Information for patients, nearest relatives, carers and others 36 patients
    [Show full text]
  • Briefing: Mental Health Act 2007
    Briefing December 2008 Mental Health Act 2007 Introduction The Mental Health Act 1983 (as amended, most recently by the Mental Health Act 2007) is designed to give health professionals the powers, in certain circumstances, to detain, assess and treat people with mental disorders in the interests of their health and safety or for public safety. Powers set out in the 1983 Act (as amended) allow for both ‘civil’ admissions to hospital and criminal justice admissions from the courts or prison. The legislation also provides safeguards for patients to ensure they are not inappropriately treated under the provisions of the Act. In 2007/8 in England 47,600 people were detained under the Act (41 per cent following voluntary (‘informal’) admissions) (The Information Centre 2008). The government’s original intention had been to pass a wholly new Mental Health Act to replace the 1983 Act. However, opposition to many of its proposals meant that the 2007 Act, which received Royal Assent on 19 July 2007, is shorter than originally planned. It amends, rather than replaces, the 1983 Act. The Mental Health Act 2007 applies to England and Wales (as does the Mental Health Act 1983). The Scottish Parliament has powers over mental health legislation in Scotland and in 2003 passed its own Mental Health Act (the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003), which came into effect in 2005. Although this legislation has the same broad purpose as the 2007 Act in England and Wales, the two Acts differ significantly in substance, so comparisons need to be treated with caution.
    [Show full text]